Let Me Go
by vacantandstained
Summary: Before becoming a part of Leverage, Eliot travelled the US looking for jobs. On his travels he met a girl called Annie and they fell in love. But he's holding her back and he has to move on.


**This was inspired by the song 'Let Me Go' by Christian Kane - if you haven't heard, look it up cause it's truly amazing. Anyway, this is set before Eliot came to Leverage, when he was travelling the US looking for jobs and whatnot. On his way he came across a girl called Annie who he fell in love with, but he's holding her back and needs to move on.**

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**Let Me Go**

Eliot settled himself on the tailgate of his '82 Chevy, a cigarette hanging limply from his full lips and dark shades covering his troubled eyes. Annie stood in front of him and rested herself against his chest. Eliot told himself not to wrap his arms around her waist, not to pull her close against his body and savour the warmth. It'd only make this harder. He did it anyway, tried to blame it on muscle memory but knew better.

How was he going to do this?

'What d'ya think LA is like this time of year?' Annie asked, laying her arms over his.

Eliot sighed and flicked his cigarette on the ground, watching it burn itself out in the dirt. She needed to stop thinking of running away as an option. She spun suddenly in his arms and hugged herself close to his chest, nuzzling his throat.

'Stop it, darlin'.' he told her, his eyes slipping closed of their own accord.

He opened them again and lifted his hands to push her away, ending up stroking his fingers through her soft, chocolate brown hair instead.

'What's up, baby?' Annie asked, leaning back to look in his eyes.

Her sparkling blue eyes bore into his soul, shone bright with concern.

Oh lord, there was no way he could do this. His Momma always used to tell him 'If you love something, let it go'. He'd always thought it was bullshit, stemmed by his Father leaving when Eliot was just a kid. Now he was realising the truth in her words.

'Darlin', you knew this conversation was gonna have to happen.' he whispered, starting what he knew was gonna be one helluva awful talk.

Annie huffed exasperatedly, snuggled herself against his neck again and placed a gentle kiss below his ear. She was trying to ignore him, and he just couldn't let that happen. He needed to tell her this and she needed to listen.

'Girl, you got it good here.' he told her, his voice gravelly, 'You don't wanna go messing with that.'

He sighed again, running a hand through his long hair.

'You don't wanna go messing with me. I ain't going nowhere, you've got your whole life ahead of ya.' he whispered against her hair, begging her with all he had to listen to him.

Annie was silent for a minute, then asked: 'How's about Texas?'

Eliot growled and pushed her away from his chest, standing from the car and stomping a few steps away. He shook his head, his hair whipping about his face from the desert wind.

'Ain't you been listening?' he asked the ground, refusing to turn and face her.

He knew if he did he'd just give up on this and pull her into his arms. He'd kiss her soft lips and try to forget how wrong it all was. But he couldn't do that, he had to leave and Annie had to stay.

He folded tensed arms across his broad chest, hugging himself against the sparks of pain spreading out from his heart.

'It's never gonna work out.' he told her, kicking the dirt angrily.

His fingers flexed against his ribs with the urge to hold her, to hit something, to do anything. It didn't help that Annie stepped forward and slipped her soft, delicate arms around his waist, pressing her face in between his shoulder blades.

'You gotta let me go, Annie.' he whispered, and they both knew he wasn't talking physically.

She wasn't ready to let go, physically or mentally, she just gripped him as tight as she could. He smiled slightly at that - the girl was always convinced she was strong, when she couldn't knock down a fly. He didn't let himself hold her back.

'I ain't no good for you. I'll only break your heart.' he told her, his voice more watery than he'd ever admit.

'No.' Annie replied, simply, matter-of-fact.

She pulled on Eliot's body, forcing him to turn around and face her. What he saw when he did near about broke him in two.

Annie's eyes were filled with tears she had yet to cry, her arms were crossed against her chest and she was shaking with what he could only assume was a mixture of anger and sadness. That's what he was feeling, anyway.

'You don't get to do this, Eliot. You don't get to decide what I can and can't take, what makes my heart break and what doesn't.' she told him, her voice strong like she wouldn't accept any arguing.

She glared up at him, unfolding her arms to poke an angry finger against his chest violently. He didn't try to stop her, figured that this was what he deserved. Hell, he'd let her kick his ass into the dirt if he thought it'd do any good.

'Darlin', you gotta understand.' he told her, stuffing uncomfortable hands in the pockets of his jeans, 'I ain't nothing but a drifter with a head full of dreams that ain't ever gonna come true. You could do a helluva lot better.'

Annie blew out a frustrated breath and threw her hands up in the air, like he was being a crazy man, making no sense. But he was making sense, he was being more sensible than he ever had been. He was a nobody, and she had so much potential to be a somebody.

'You gotta listen, baby. You can't just drown me out.' he begged her, but it seemed that was exactly what she going to do.

She turned away from him, breathing heavy and hitching. Oh lord, he couldn't stand to see her cry. He tried to turn her around but she was having none of it, aiming a hard kick to his shin which he quickly dodged. Instead he walked around her, grabbed her shoulders so she couldn't turn away and used two gentle fingers to lift her chin. Slowly, almost hesitantly, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. It was supposed to be a quick thing, something to get her attention and maybe to say goodbye, but that changed in an instant.

Annie's arms were suddenly wrapped around his neck, her hands in his hair, tugging just how he liked it. His hands found their way to her hips, his eyes fluttering shut. He licked his way into her perfect mouth, tried to stop himself, to pull back, but her tongue was rolling with his and he just couldn't. He needed this, needed her warmth and her lips and...he just needed her. Lord, he was in deep.

Finally, when their lungs were screaming for air and their lips were sore, they broke apart, panting desperately. Annie's hands slipped down from his hair and balled up in his shirt like she was never going to let go. His fingers flexed on her hips lightly, like he was testing his ability to push her away. He didn't push her away, instead pulled her head against his chest and buried his face in her hair.

'This can't work, hon.' he whispered, still trying to be the good guy, 'You've got another year left of college, and I've gotta move on.'

She snorted, like her education didn't mean nothing to her, but he knew better than that. She had big dreams, dreams she could only fulfill if she got the grades he knew she could.

'You got your Momma and your Daddy, and they ain't just gonna let you run away. Imagine how they'd feel if you just upped and left.' Sure, it was a dirty card to play, but he needed this to hit home.

'You've got your home, your family, you've got a life.' he tugged on her hair a little to make her look at him, 'Me? All I've got is this shitbucket of a truck and $93. And that ain't just the money till I get to an ATM, that is all I have. Period. I ain't got no bank cards or nothing like you, I barely got the money to look after myself.'

Worry flitted across her face then, as it always did when she thought about how little money he had. She wasn't exactly privileged, but she had enough money to have a good life, and seeing someone who didn't made her feel almost guilty. He knew that about her, knew how much she wanted to make all his money troubles go away.

She opened her mouth to say something, probably something about how she had money and she could help him with costs, but thought better of it. He'd never take money off a woman, hadn't done so since his Momma had paid him his allowance when he was a kid.

'Just let me go, Annie. It'd be better for everyone.' he told her, trying so hard to make his voice sound more confident than he felt.

But she'd heard it, the waver in his voice, and now she was smirking at him, clearly ready to argue again.

'Nice try, Eliot.' she chuckled, though what she was finding funny about this situation he didn't know.

'You can't hide behind those shades, telling me things that you don't mean.' she told him, pulling the shades in question off his face and tucking them in his shirt pocket, 'I know you too damn well.'

He knew that, and damn if that didn't make this a thousand times harder.

'Ya see,' she leaned in like she was telling a secret, 'I don't think you're all that tough. You play this big, bad man, but secretly you're just a little boy, afraid of love.'

His eyebrows furrowed at that - he wasn't no little boy. But he couldn't think of any argument, couldn't think of anything at all to say to that. Maybe she was right... No, he was doing this for the right reasons.

'Baby, that ain't-' he tried to tell her, but she interrupted him instantly.

'Besides, it ain't like there ain't room in your truck. I don't take up that much space.' she was smiling at him, and dammit he was trying _so freaking hard_ not to smile back.

'Take me with you, baby.' she wasn't asking, she was telling. 'You know you can't live without me, you ain't as strong as you think you are.'

Fight back, Eliot, he told himself. Tell her something, anything to make her leave. Tell her you don't love her, lie till your freaking teeth fall out, just don't let her convince you.

'Okay.' he whispered, and he wrapped his arms around her and gripped her tight.

He didn't ever want to let her go.

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**IF YOU WANT THIS TO END HAPPILY, STOP READING NOW. **

**I wanted to end it the way the song does, all happy and stuff, but I just couldn't. The plot ran away of its own accord, pulling me with it. **


End file.
